Development on recently announced role-playing-game Magna Carta 2 (which has nothing to do with the actual Magna Carta) first began about four years and eight months ago. What's taken so long?

The first title in the series, Magna Carta: The Phantom of Avalanche, was released in 2001, and the second game, Magna Carta: Crimson Stigmata, came out in 2004. While Crimson Stigmata borrowed battle elements from Star Ocean games, Magna Carta 2 has a brand new combat system.

"One of the biggest reasons as to why it took so long to develop this game is we wanted to build a new battle system from the ground up," Banpresto's Yoshihisa Kanesaka told game site Siliconera. "This game has a completely new battle system."

The second reason is that developers wanted to make sure the models closely matched illustrator Kim Hyung Tae's character design. "We put a lot of energy into these two things from the ground up which is why it took so long," Kanesaka added. Gamers hoping to play Magna Carta 2 will have to wait a little longer. The game isn't out in Japan until August.